Duveneck Connections
Home of the Dragons
Dear Duveneck Families,
One of the end of school traditions is about to begin next week. Our faculty is thinking about students’ transitions into their next grade levels for the 2020/21 school year. As we approach this process, it is natural that you may have questions about your child’s classroom placement for next year. In the upcoming weeks, our teachers, specialists and I will begin this careful and thoughtful process of creating balanced classrooms for next year by engaging in conversations within grade level clusters. Placement recommendations are not completed in isolation; in fact, this is one of the most collaborative events for our teachers and staff each year (even in the era of COVID 19)!
Our staff spends several hours designing student groupings that consider the following factors:
The needs of the individual child.
Compatibility: Are there friendship possibilities for each child?
The need to mix and create balance within each classroom and among classrooms at every grade level.
Social Relationships: Will the social dynamics of the class work to foster a positive learning environment?
Learning Needs: Does each class reflect the range of learners, from independent to needing special support? Does each class reflect the range of academic performance levels?
We take our classroom grouping process extremely seriously, always trying to put the best educational interests and developmental needs of the children first. We expect parents will trust and respect the judgment of school staff in making classroom placement decisions. Our teachers meet several times to mix and carefully create balanced groups of children, they work diligently with our specialists and with me to inform their recommended groups. Once our teachers have agreed on their recommended groups of students, I review them again, and I assign the teacher’s names to those groups to create class assignments.
If you have specific information you would like to be considered by your child’s teacher and by me, please consider providing your input. Please communicate your insights regarding your child’s learning or social/emotional needs to me directly at lcrane@pausd.org no later than May 22, 2020. The information you provide to me will be shared with your child’s current teacher to consider for placement, and it will be shared with your child’s future teacher for a smooth transition into their next grade level.
Please note that we do not accept requests for specific teachers, and such requests will not be considered.
Here’s to making the most of the last weeks of the school year!
Warm Wishes,
Leslie Crane
Principal
Parenting Support Series
PAUSD is partnering with Asian Americans for Community Involvement to offer a four-week series to support families, “Creating Calm at Home During Covid-19. This pilot webinar series will cover:
- Week 1: Improving the parent-child connection in close quarters
- Week 2: Working through generational differences in communication
- Week 3: Helping children manage their emotions while managing your own
- Week 4: Developing children’s coping and self-efficacy skills
Parents and guardians are invited to register to join the webinars live or access the recordings after.
English on Wednesdays, May 6, 13, 20 & 27 from 6:30-8:00 pm
Mandarin on Thursdays, May 7, 14, 21, & 28 from 6:30-8:00 pm
About Us
Email: lcrane@pausd.org
Website: https://duveneck.pausd.org/
Location: 705 Alester Avenue, Palo Alto, CA, USA
Phone: 650-322-5946